Stanley Cup 2019 Odds: Top 6 NHL teams pegged to win it all this season

As the NHL season begins, the Lightning are among three teams with 8-1 odds to win the Stanley Cup. Surprisingly, last year's final two teams, the Golden Knights and Capitals are 14-1. However, Tampa Bay boasts a talented and potent lineup including Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov. They also play in the tough Atlantic Division, but still have one of the best lineups on paper.

The Toronto Maple Leaps seriously upgraded their roster during the offseason by acquiring John Tavares. Toronto was already an explosive team, as it was, but Tavares makes them that much better. Most analysts believe this is the team to beat in the Atlantic and in all of the NHL. Watch out!

The Winnipeg Jets didn't make any significant moves this offseason and lost Paul Stastny. Still, the team possesses tremendous upside. That includes Patrik Laine who led the team with 44 goals and finished second to Blake Wheeler in points scored with 70. Add in players like Mark Scheifele, Nikolaj Ehlers, and Kyle Connor, and this team still looks stacked for the coming season.

Nashville comes from the same division and situation as Winnipeg, in that they made no major roster additions. However, this team boasts an impressive defense and their goalie is the reigning Vezina winner. They took the division, last year, by a mere three points over Winnipeg, so it'll be interesting to see how things play out this season.

Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel, and Sidney Crosby are just three of the powerful players on this lineup. In addition, this team has won two Stanley Cups within the past three seasons, and three within the past decade. The experience factor seems to be on their side, if they can advance past other tough lineups, such as the Washington Capitals or Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Sharks are also a 12-1 favorite to win it all this coming season. San Jose was able to sweep Anaheim in the first round last year, but then fell to Vegas 4-2 in the second round. They were third in their division behind Vegas and Anaheim. They'll look to return to the postseason behind Brent Burns, Joe Pavelski, and Logan Couture for a possible 2019 Stanley Cup run.